Democracy without associations
Subtitle: transformation of the party system and social cleavages in India
By: Pradeep K. Chhibber.
Series: Interests, identities, and institutions in comparative politics
Publisher: University of Michigan Press
Published: 1999
Place of publication: Ann Arbor
Language: eng
Number of pages: 287
Subjects: Political parties -- India.; India -- Politics and government -- 1977-
Description: "India's party system has undergone a profound transformation over the last decade. The Congress Party, a catchall party that brought independence in 1947 and governed India for much of the period since then, no longer dominates the electoral scene. Political parties that draw support from particular castes and religious groups are now more powerful than ever before.

Democracy without Associations explains why religious and caste-based political parties have come to dominate the electoral landscape in 1990s India and why catchall parties have declined."--BOOK JACKET. "Democracy without Associations will interest scholars and students of Indian politics and party politics, as well as those interested in the impact of social divisions on the political system."--BOOK JACKET.
Notes: Includes bibliographical references (p. 255-274) and index.
Table of contents: title: State structures, associational life, and the social basis of party systems; title: Central, state, and local governments in India; title: Electoral laws, associations, and the organization of the Catchall Congress Party; title: Electoral competition and the growth of central intervention in the states; title: Building coalitions in the Indian States; title: From a Catchall to a cleavage-based party system in an Indian State : Uttar Pradesh; title: State policy, party politics, and the rise of the BJP; title: The centrality of parties to Indian politics : the politics of economic reform and collective violence; title: Forming links between social cleavages and party systems : Algeria and Spain; title: Conclusion : rethinking party systems and social cleavages.